The West Hollywood Soccer Club consists of multiple competitive teams that have won championships, including the Division 3 title at the Sin City Classic Soccer Tournament. (photo courtesy of West Hollywood Soccer Club)

In 1985, men in West Hollywood were looking for a safe and welcoming place to play soccer. With the goal of building an inclusive community built on a mutual love of the game, they created the West Hollywood Soccer Club. 40 years later, the West Hollywood Soccer Club is Los Angeles’ largest and oldest LGBTQ+ soccer club.

Since its founding, WHSC has evolved to encompass multiple teams, win international championships and provide nearly 180 members with an inclusive space to play the game. The club is open to anyone interested in playing, regardless of sexual orientation, gender or skill level, and has members ranging from Division I soccer alums to those who have never kicked a ball before.

“The club has grown exponentially over the last couple of years,” club secretary Ken Sanchez said. “And the plus part, out of LGBTQ plus, is the part that’s really telling. All our straight allies that are playing with their gay friends and their lesbian friends and vice-versa – is sort of the optimal scenario of how the world should look.”

The club recently announced that it secured an agreement with the Los Angeles Unified School District to host weekly open practice sessions at Fairfax High School on Tuesday evenings. One of the missions of the club, Sanchez said, is to give members experience playing soccer as sports have historically been a challenging environment for LGBTQ+ youth.

WHSC fields five teams that compete in the L.A. Municipal Sports soccer league and play in tournaments around the world, hosting fall tryouts for prospective players to find the best-fit team. Originally founded by men, the club expanded women’s and nonbinary programs in the last five years, with nearly 100 women now playing with the club, Sanchez said. WHSC is now a five-time International Gay and Lesbian Football Association world champion – with the women winning and men placing second in the past year.

The club also focuses on creating opportunities for more experienced players to train newer ones, giving members a range of opportunities from intense competitive play to supportive learning environments.

“There’s a time and a place for competitive players to have a place to go play,” Sanchez said. “But there’s also an importance to that Division 1 player playing and passing on their knowledge to the person that didn’t have the chance to develop that skill set because of the situation they grew up in.”

WHSC is funded through membership dues, grants and donations from local businesses, Sanchez said, adding that the club was the only LGBTQ+ organization to receive a grant from the Los Angeles World Cup 2026 Host Committee and Play Equity Fund ahead of the 2026 FIFA Men’s World Cup in the U.S. The grant helped fund WHSC’s weekly sessions at Fairfax High School, which costs the club $25,000 annually, Sanchez said.

With L.A. hosting games during the World Cup, Sanchez said the club is working with the city of West Hollywood to host a street-style tournament next summer so the community can celebrate soccer together. The tournament will also serve as a send-off celebration as the club sends teams to participate in the Gay Games, the biggest LGBTQ+ sports and culture event in the world, held in Valencia, Spain in 2026.

In naming his favorite memories with the club, Sanchez recalled the club’s women’s team winning its first official tournament in 2021 and crying during a postgame speech given by the club’s first female president, Rachel Derrico. The biggest testament to the club, Sanchez said, is the people who are part of it.

“The key is creating a space that is welcoming and that’s amazing and going to do away with the trauma that some folks experienced,” he said. “We’ve built something really extraordinary. Every member of this club has built something extraordinary.”

For information, visit wehosc.org.